coronavirus

Gov. Kim Reynolds is encouraging Iowans to get the COVID-19 vaccine as numbers indicate demand for the shot is decreasing.

Students and employees at Iowa’s three public universities will not be required to get the COVID-19 vaccine. The president of the Board of Regents made the announcement at a meeting Wednesday.

Gov. Kim Reynolds said she expects the temporary pause in the use of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine to be manageable for Iowa.

A University of Iowa study has found health care workers were more likely to develop COVID-19 infections from exposures at home as opposed to in their workplace.

The Iowa Department of Human Services says it is considering ways to incentivize more employees at six state facilities to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

Gov. Kim Reynolds said at a press briefing Wednesday that she opposes the use of COVID-19 vaccine passports.

Iowa is opening up COVID-19 vaccine appointments to all eligible adults on April 5, meaning thousands more Iowans will have access to the vaccine. This should move the state closer to herd immunity and the return to some normalcy, but some Iowans say they don’t want to get vaccinated.

It’s not yet clear how many Iowans are suffering from long COVID, dealing with lingering symptoms of the illness for weeks or months. Early estimates suggest there could be thousands of these “long-haulers." For Mateo Salazar of Urbandale, the condition is completely debilitating. He and his family are reckoning with the possibility that he may never recover.

One year into the coronavirus pandemic, scores of COVID-19 survivors in Iowa haven’t recovered from the illness, earning them the name “long-haulers." Weeks or even months after first testing positive, some Iowans are still battling debilitating illness and are beginning to wonder if they will ever recover.

Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Wednesday that the state is on track to open vaccine appointments to all eligible Iowans starting April 5, but warned demand will outstrip supply.